Caltrans honors its workers killed on duty

178 orange caution cones, each with the name of a Caltrans worker killed in the line of duty since 1924, including 15 from San Diego and Imperial Counties are displayed during the annual Highway Workers Memorial Day ceremony held at the Caltrans district office in Old Town.

Howard Lipin

178 orange caution cones, each with the name of a Caltrans worker killed in the line of duty since 1924, including 15 from San Diego and Imperial Counties are displayed during the annual Highway Workers Memorial Day ceremony held at the Caltrans district office in Old Town.

178 orange caution cones, each with the name of a Caltrans worker killed in the line of duty since 1924, including 15 from San Diego and Imperial Counties are displayed during the annual Highway Workers Memorial Day ceremony held at the Caltrans district office in Old Town. (Howard Lipin)

To mark Highway Workers Memorial Day, officials held a solemn ceremony Wednesday in Old Town to honor the 178 state highway workers killed in the line of duty between 1924 and 2011.

Orange cones with the names of the each employee and the year each died were arranged in the courtyard of Caltrans’ regional headquarters on Taylor Street, where hundreds gathered for the service.

The observance included a moment of silence and the recitation of the names of the employees, 15 of whom were from San Diego and Imperial counties.

“It’s important to honor our fallen workers who have made the ultimate sacrifice,” said Laurie Berman, Caltrans’ local director.

The last three deaths in the region happened in 2011 in May and June. “The sharp wound of their loss is still painful,” Berman said.

The workers were Richard Gonzalez, 52, of San Ysidro, who was hit and killed on the Interstate 15 connector to eastbound state Route 94; Jaime Obeso, 53, of Imperial, who died after being hit on Interstate 8 in Imperial County; and Stephen Palmer, 64, of Jamul, who was working on trolley tracks in National City when he was struck by an oncoming train.

Caltrans employee Ralph Gonzalez, 44, a lead maintenance worker who has been with the agency for 13 years, was one of the employees who volunteered for the name reading. He said he knew the three local workers who lost their lives two years ago.

“They died doing what they loved to do — serving the public,” Gonzalez said.

He said the memorial was a sobering reminder for him and fellow workers to never let their guard down while working.

Gonzalez said people just do not realize how dangerous it is to work on the highways where cars are speeding by just a few feet away. He said not long ago one of his crew members had a very close call when a driver ran onto the shoulder and slammed into some heavy equipment. Luckily, said Gonzalez, the crew member was away from the equipment at the time.

In 2007, the state enacted the Move Over Law, which requires drivers nearing a work zone to move over one lane if it’s safe to do so or slow down.

One of the state’s highway signs reminding drivers of the law was unveiled at the ceremony.

Gonzalez said he appreciated the memorial for the fallen.

“I think its great that they are recognizing the lives that were lost,” Gonzalez said. “Hopefully the public will pay more attention when they are driving.”